A for Effort

Does A’van’s M3 warrant an ovation?

Words and Images by: MALCOLM STREET N26735

Most rental motorhomes available in Australia are purpose built for that market. Anyone familiar with the private and rental markets will know that there are some differences, mostly in the general layout and construction. In addition to all that, just about all the rental motorhome depots around Australia are located in capital cities close to the coast and international airports, obviously to attract overseas tourists planning a down under trip.

Just in case you are a motorhome-owning club member and wondering why rental motorhomes are mentioned, then it’s helpful to remember that there are many associate members who do not own a motorhome. The rental route might well be the only way of getting on the road in the style to which the rest of us have become accustomed. Another thought, particularly when time and/or fuel costs are an issue, is that a rental for a short motorhome holiday on the other side of country or even across the Tasman might be an option worth considering.

One of the exceptions to just about all of the aforementioned characteristics of a motorhome rental company is Albury Wodonga RV World. For a start it is located inland at Wodonga (Vic) and the nearest international airport is Tullamarine, around three hours or a short flight away. Secondly, a fair chunk of its rental fleet is based on motorhomes which are normally built for the private market – A’van and Sunliner for the most part, although it does have several Talvor (based on Apollo rentals) models available as well.

In terms of layout, rental motorhomes are often built in a simpler style to cope with multiple use wear and tear, are often narrower than private motorhomes – mostly for the benefit of inexperienced drivers and frequently do not have awnings or island beds. In the latter case, with four- and six-berth layouts, in order to accommodate more passengers in fixed seating, the beds have to be made up every night.

Which is why the A’van Ovation M3 C class motorhome, that’s built quite successfully for the private market, might be a reasonable motorhome layout to have in a rental fleet. Just a note here, A’van distinguishes its Luton and non Luton motorhomes by calling the latter a lowline and the former an Alcove, which is a little deceptive because the Luton is a bit more than just an alcove!

Having a Luton peak means there are two beds available, one above the cab and a fixed bed in the rear. There are two seatbelt-equipped seats in the rear on the other side of the table behind the driver’s seat. They are close enough to the driver’s cab to allow a reasonable level of conversation between passengers. That might appear a funny comment but there have been some rental motorhome designs where the rear passengers are right at the back, making normal conversation difficult.

Just looking at the rest of the layout, the nearside two-seat lounge integrates well with the swivelled cab seats and offside table, making up a neat and compact lounge/dining area. Additionally, there’s a smallish offside kitchen mid motorhome, a mid-sized bathroom in the rear offside corner and a bed filling the opposite side.

In keeping with the majority of contemporary motorhome interiors, 12V LED light fittings are fitted in mostly logical places and give good general illumination. An interesting feature of the Ovation is that it comes with a mini home theatre sound system which goes with the TV and DVD player but oddly not with the radio – the motorhome only has the driver’s cab radio/CD player.

SLEEPING HOURS

As noted above, the main bed fits into the rear corner and is 1.98m (6ft 6in) long. Given its location next to the bathroom it has a chamfered side so its width varies from 1.22m (4ft) at the head to 0.91m at the foot. It’s a bed shape that isn’t going to suit everybody but most people of average height and stature are going to be reasonably comfortable.

Lifting the posture slat bed base gives access to the under-bed storage, part of which is taken by the sound system bass speaker and it’s certainly more easily accessed from the external bin door.

Slightly differently from regular travellers, rental users often have travel bags and need somewhere to stash them and the under-bed area is good for that. Overhead lockers fill the air space around the bed, while a few recessed slots cut into the bathroom wall offer the inboard sleeper a bit of night-time shelf space.

CATERING AND DINING

Designed in a quite a compact arrangement, the kitchen bench has a Smev three-burner cooktop against the wall and a stainless-steel sink at right angles to that with a circular drainer in between. That doesn’t leave any room for benchtop area but the sink and cooktop have smoked glass lids. Under the sink and facing the entry door opposite is a Smev grill oven. The remaining under-bench area is devoted to general storage with a cupboard, cutlery drawer and floor locker. Two overhead lockers offer more kitchen storage. Those other kitchen essentials, a three-way 190-litre Dometic fridge with microwave oven above are opposite the kitchen bench, between the entry door and the bed.

KEEPING CLEAN

A large roof hatch and medium sized window improve the bathroom’s space perceptions considerably, as does the mixed decor with the curved lines of the cabinet and overhead lockers. In all that there is just enough room for a shower cubicle, Thetford cassette toilet, wash basin with storage cupboard and shaving cabinet. Generally speaking the bathroom layout works quite well.

BODYWORK

Built on a Fiat Ducato Multijet 180 chassis, the Ovation has a 4000kg GVM which, given the stated tare weight of 3170kg, offers a good load capacity. Regular travellers might use all of that but renters much less so. At nearly 7m/21ft long it’s definitely in the mid-sized motorhome category.

For the body structure, A’van’s walls and roof are a fibreglass composite structure with fibreglass mouldings for the front and lower rear bumper bar area. Polypropylene sheet is used for the sub floor; the main floor, being raised to cab level, is made of timber laminate and allows for storage compartments underneath.

Instead of the more usual Seitz style windows, A’van has opted for Polyplastic tinted, acrylic fittings. They have integrated blinds and insect screens but the internal framework protrudes slightly from the walls. Given its Euro style the Hartal door has a top half window but not a separate security screen. An optional extra on our review motorhome was the polished aluminium nudgebar.

External bin space consists of the gas cylinder bin on the offside behind the driver’s cab and two bins on the nearside. They are not really sealed for external use – the forward one giving access to the under-seat area and the rear one giving access to the under-bed area. A plastic bin for hoses and other items would be very handy.

Out of sight on the roof are the TV antenna, an Air Command Ibis air-conditioner and an optional 80W sound system. Also out of sight are the 95 AH deep-cycle battery and the 18- amp battery charger – they are located below a floor hatch that sits underneath the table. For the general electrics, A’van has fitted its standard control panels by the entry door. It’s fairly intuitive to use and practical for not only owners but newcomers too.

ON THE ROAD

Like many Ducato-powered motorhomes built in Australia, the Ovation has the most powerful of the Fiat turbo-diesels – the 3.0-litre, 132KW/400Nm. Having a good bit of grunt underfoot makes driving the Ovation a breeze – even the six-speed AMT gearbox is reasonably well behaved. Although the external rear-vision mirrors are good, the extra vision from the rear view camera is an asset.

The Ducato driver’s cab is quite well appointed with all the expected items. Regular motorhomers will be familiar with the front-wheel drive Fiat but for the newcomers, although larger and higher than a normal sedan, it really isn’t a difficult drive at all. Unlike most other motorhomes on the road, being a front-wheel drive means there are a few things to keep in mind when on slippery surfaces.

VERDICT

So how does this Ovation M3 built for the private sector, stack up in the rental market? Quite well it seems to me. It’s certainly easy driving and will accommodate a family of four without too much trouble. There are a few compromises, of course, like a smallish kitchen and corner bed but that’s the price to pay for motorhome this length.

One of the benefits of Albury Wodonga RV World having the Ovation on its rental fleet means it’s quite easy for a prospective purchaser to try before they buy. As you’d expect, the RV World will sell you a new model if you happen to like the layout.

Another benefit related to the dealer’s location is that if you fancy a trip to the Victorian/NSW alpine areas or even along the Murray River, without a long drive, then it’s all very easy.

GOOD THINKING